


Hello, Gorgeous

by katling



Series: Tony Stark Bingo [29]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/M, For the entire canon, Natasha finds Tony strangely adorable, Obadiah Stane is a creep, Pre-Canon, Tony suffers from mild foot in mouth disease
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-31
Updated: 2020-01-31
Packaged: 2021-02-25 06:01:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22491220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katling/pseuds/katling
Summary: Tony Stark, meet Natasha Romanoff. Natasha Romanoff, meet Tony Stark. This is the start of a beautiful relationship.Written for the Tony Stark Bingo - Card 3054, Square A1: Tony Stark/Natasha Romanoff
Relationships: Natasha Romanov/Tony Stark
Series: Tony Stark Bingo [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1270763
Comments: 30
Kudos: 758
Collections: Assassin Twins + Tony, Tony Stark Bingo 2020





	Hello, Gorgeous

**Author's Note:**

> Okay, just... forget everything you know about canon. In this fic, Tony and Natasha are about the same age (I'm thinking mid-twenties). Clint recruited Natasha earlier than I think is true in canon. Tony plucked Pepper out of Accounting (or wherever she was) and made her his PA when he was in his early twenties. 
> 
> Just... go with it. That's pretty much what I did as I was writing this.

Natalia Romanova cursed under her breath as her fingers danced over the keyboard. She wished a long and painful death on the idiot who’d given her bad intel. She also wished she could remember to think of herself as Natasha Romanoff. The first would be easier to do, though more likely to get her in trouble with her new… employers? She wasn’t entirely sure what to call them. They said they were her employers but she was well aware that her freedom and, indeed, her continued existence was entirely at their mercy so masters might be a better term.

It wasn’t even that much of a change to her name, more of an Anglicisation than anything else, but somehow the differences were profound. Natalia Romanova was a spy, an assassin and a Black Widow, a product of the Red Room and an Asset to Mother Russia. Natasha Romanoff was all those things except for the asset part. Unfortunately, that was the bit that was the most jarring change. Going from an Asset to Mother Russia to an… ‘employee’ of the United States of America was a bigger change than anything else she’d ever done.

She was dragged out of her thoughts by the door opening and someone slipping inside. She grimaced and slid one hand down to where she had a knife hidden but the man didn’t even blink when he turned around and saw her sitting at her mark’s desk, clearly accessing his computer.

He was young, this man. Perhaps her age or close to it. He had brown hair cut in a style that said ‘I’ve just gotten out of bed’ but probably took at least an hour to achieve. His eyes were also brown and full of a jaded weariness that she understood all too well. As she watched those eyes flickered through a range of emotions - surprise, appreciation, amusement, curiosity - before finally settling on the latter.

“Well, hel _lo_ , gorgeous,” he said in a manner that was probably supposed to be smooth and suave but was really just a shade ridiculous. “I didn’t expect to find this room occupied. Mind if I join you?”

Natalia blinked, actually _blinked_. The man’s face… or rather his eyes… were far too open and easy to read and she could tell he wasn’t at all shocked or angry to find her doing what she was doing. Or failing to do, actually.

“God, you’re really gorgeous,” he said before his eyes widened in horror. “Oh, shit. Pretend I didn’t say that. Pepper’s always telling me I can’t just blurt stuff out like that but in my defence, I’m pretty drunk and you are drop dead gorgeous.”

Natalia found herself a little amused by him. She was certainly used to men considering her to be beautiful - it was part of her job as a Black Widow to look beautiful - but most didn’t bother with any considerations about whether she wanted to be told. It was… refreshing.

“Got a name, gorgeous?” the man said before another look of horror drifted onto his face and then he looked plaintively at her. “Look, you gotta give me a name or I’m going to keep calling you gorgeous and Pepper is going to stab me with her shoe. And I buy her these shoes with very pointy heels so she could totally do it.”

“You buy her shoes?” Natalia asked, the question less of a delaying tactic and more of genuine amused curiosity about this unusual young man.

“Well, she’s my personal assistant, which is, like, the world’s most frustrating job so I buy her shoes to apologise. Or she buys herself shoes using my credit card. Same, same.”

Natalia found herself being inexplicably charmed by this ridiculous man. She’d be annoyed but he was far too open and she could tell he wasn’t trying to manipulate her. He really _was_ this ridiculous.

“Natal…” she began before she caught herself. “Nat,” she said firmly. “Just… Nat.”

“Nat,” the man said quietly then he grinned. It was a delightful grin and Natalia knew she wanted to see it again. Her Black Widow side immediately argued against that but she ignored it for the moment as he continued. “Hi, Nat. I’m Tony. So, watcha doing?”

He’d sidled around the table and up behind her before she could move and when she looked up, she could see the way that his eyes sharpened. This close she could smell the alcohol on him, overlaid surprisingly pleasantly by whatever cologne he used. But however drunk he was, he wasn’t stupid.

“Huh, trying to hack in?” he said then he grimaced. “Ugh, bit of a mess. Shove over. Let me try.”

Natalia frowned. “Let you try?”

“Yeah, sure,” Tony said with a wave of his hand. He grinned again, mischievous and airy. “I mean, I’m guessing you’re some kind of hacker or spy or something and frankly, our illustrious host could do with being taken down a notch or two. He’s a sleaze and that’s saying something given how many sleazes there are in the weapons business.”

“Like you?” Natalia said with an arched eyebrow.

Tony mocked a hurt expression that she quickly realised had a genuine edge to it. “Hey, I always make sure my ladies and gents are fully consenting adults.”

She knew she could twist the knife right now but… she didn’t want to. She wasn’t entirely sure why but she knew that she didn’t really want to hurt this engaging, ridiculous man who somehow didn’t set off her defences and who apparently wanted to help her. Why and what he wanted in return was something she could deal with later.

She gave him a small nod of apology then moved her chair aside and gestured towards the computer. “By all means.”

Tony grinned at her then got to work. She was chagrined when he cracked the computer open in just a few minutes and scowled at him, amusement gleaming in her eyes.

“Damn you.”

He laughed. “His security was pretty good but, hey, computers are kind of my thing.” 

He moved aside and allowed her to take over and retrieve the information she wanted. He didn’t question anything she did, even when she heard him making grumbling noises. She realised that he wasn’t grumbling about her actions but about what was being revealed. He even pointed out a few files that she might have left alone but proved to have good information. When she was done, he took over and secured the computer again, erasing any trace of their presence.

“So, Nat?” he said with affected nonchalance after they slipped out of the room. “Could I tempt to into a dance? Could be a good cover if we’re seen coming back to the ballroom?”

She was tempted, very tempted. From the way he moved, she suspected he might be a good dancer. But her instructions were clear and her escape route was already in place.

“I think I would have liked that,” she said. “But I’m afraid I cannot.”

She turned to leave then came to a sudden halt. Before she could think twice about it, she darted back to his side, noting that he didn’t even flinch. She wasn’t sure if he was foolish or not but she supposed she might never get that answer. She pressed close and kissed him, utilising a few Black Widow tricks, not to manipulate but to give him her thanks. When she pulled away, he looked more than a little poleaxed and she laughed.

“Goodbye, Tony, and thank you.”

*****

Natasha (she was getting used to the name even if it still wasn’t entirely comfortable) had never expected to see Tony again. At least, not in the flesh. She saw him in the news a great deal. She’d looked him up after she’d returned to SHIELD and knew he was Tony Stark, owner and CEO of Stark Industries. She’d laughed softly to herself when she found that out. She knew SHIELD were interested in him but thought that it was a waste of time, that he was too interested in women and drink to be of use. She knew that he _was_ interested in women (and men, if what he’d said was true) and drink but that it only affected him as much as he wanted it to.

She could have told SHIELD, could have offered to twist him to their tune, but she didn’t want to. He’d been funny and ridiculous as well as helpful. He hadn’t made any of the moves that SHIELD said he was famous for… and derided him for. In fact, he’d been respectful. She wouldn’t have succeeded without him and that made her feel absurdly protective of him. She didn’t know where it was coming from. She thought the Red Room had stripped all such feelings from her but she found herself glad and _relieved_ that they hadn’t. She was still human, despite the Red Room’s best efforts. That was worth more to her than any potential assistance Tony might have given SHIELD.

It was only when she was attending another high society function as the arm candy for SHIELD’s latest mark that she realised her miscalculation. Tony _was_ high society. Of course he would be at these sorts of events. He was across the room from her, chatting with an older woman, one whose company he liked based on the way he was laughing, all mischief and amusement. Standing beside him was a red haired woman who looked amused, marginally appalled and a little like she was contemplating stabbing him with her shoe and Natasha assumed this was Pepper. 

As she watched, the older woman patted Tony on the arm and drifted back into the crowd. Tony watched her fondly for a moment then he stiffened and tensed as an older man, big and bald, came up and slung an arm over his shoulders. Natasha recognised the man - Obadiah Stane - but found herself intrigued by Tony’s body language. He seemed uncomfortable but confused by the feeling, like he had convinced himself that he liked Stane while his instincts were screaming the opposite. 

Pepper’s reaction was even more telling to Natasha’s eyes. Pepper’s expression had become politely neutral and her body language was tense and stiff. She’d shifted a little so that Tony was shielding her but there was also a protective air about her, as though she dearly wanted to rip Stane’s arm away from Tony and then stab him in the _balls_.

Natasha detached herself from her mark without a second thought. She’d already gone fishing with him and come up empty so he was a waste of time and effort. She slid through the crowd with ease and then slapped on a simpering, fawning attitude and all but threw herself at Tony.

“Oh, _Tony_ ,” she said in a breathy voice, clutching at him even though she could see she was making him uncomfortable. She saw the moment he recognised her, the sudden blink, the surprise and then quickly veiled amusement before his body language eased and he caught her around the waist in a grip that looked awkward but was surprisingly comfortable. “Remember me?”

“Ah, sure,” he said, blinking and looking like he’d never seen her before in his life. She mentally applauded his skill. “Uh, Pat, wasn’t it?”

She gave him a pouting little moue of unhappiness. “It’s _Kat_.”

“Right,” he said. She saw the glimmer of amusement in his eyes just before he deliberately looked down the front of her dress. It was all she could do not to laugh. “Kat. From the… thing. Last month.”

“You _promised_ me a dance,” she said, giving a sulky little stamp of her foot that she knew would make her breasts jiggle in the dress she was wearing.

She was in a good position to see three things - the way Tony had to desperately smother a laugh so as not to give the game away, the way Stane scowled and shifted away a fraction, obviously disgusted by the display, and the way Pepper sighed but started to relax, exasperated and reluctantly amused by what was happening.

“I suppose I did,” he said whimsically before adroitly shifting her so that he could lead her towards the dance floor. “Sorry, Obie, we’ll talk later.”

Stane made a disgruntled noise then laughed with false humour. “Of course, m’boy. Have fun.”

Natasha kept that vapid expression on her face until they were on the dance floor then she grinned at him. “You’re welcome.”

Tony laughed and shook his head as he expertly steered her across the dance floor and away from Stane and Pepper. “You’re a menace, Natty Nat, but that was fun so I don’t care.”

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Not going to ask why I’m here?”

“Nope,” Tony said with a careless shrug. “I’m sure it’s very nefarious but who cares?”

She laughed and let him guide the conversation which, true to his word, was all banter and snarky back and forth, with not even the slightest hint of interest in why she was there. This lasted through the second song they danced to and then the third before Natasha finally broke.

“Why not?”

Tony looked confused. “Why not what?”

“Why aren’t you asking what I’m up to?”

He looked contemplative. “Well… I won’t say I don’t care because I’ll admit, I’m insanely curious but it’s your job, you clearly know what you’re doing and you’re good at it and I’d rather not ruin a nice encounter by knowing what you’re up to.” A hint of cynicism drifted across his face. “Also, I’m clearly not your target so I guess part of me doesn’t actually care.”

Natasha gave him a narrow-eyed look then snorted. “You are a very odd man.”

“I’ve been told that before,” Tony said with a grin. “I take it as a compliment.”

Natasha laughed then made a decision. “You know that man Stane is manipulating you?”

Tony froze for the barest moment and a complicated array of emotions chased themselves across his face. He was completely and utterly readable even by those without her training and she wasn’t sure she liked that. Thankfully they were on the edge of the dancefloor and she turned them deftly, so that Tony’s face was shielded from the others in the room.

“I… he’s…” he began before sighing and shrugging lamely. “He’s… Obie. He’s my godfather. He does it to everyone.”

“That doesn’t make it right,” she said flatly.

He arched an eyebrow at her but she refused to feel cowed in any way. “Pepper doesn’t like him,” she said firmly.

That made Tony stop, as she’d thought it might, and he frowned. “Really? She hasn’t said anything.”

Natasha snorted. “Of course she wouldn’t. You said he’s your godfather and he clearly has you under tight control. She wouldn’t risk it. For her or for you.”

Now Tony looked troubled and Natasha drew him off the dance floor and out onto one of the balconies ringing the room. It wasn’t completely private but it was enough for their purposes.

“Obie’s… Obie’s not a threat to me,” Tony said hesitantly.

Natasha raised an eyebrow. “Now say that like you believe it.”

Tony pulled away from her and leaned against the balcony with both hands, looking out over the dark garden. His body language was tense and unhappy so Natasha stayed where she was.

“Look, even _if_ you were right, there’s nothing I can do,” he finally said. “Not without proof. Obie… he’s got too much control.”

“I thought you were the CEO and owner.”

“I am but I have a board of directors,” Tony replied. “If I just got rid of Obie, they’d kick up a stink. Especially as I…”

His shoulders hunched and she suspected she knew what he hadn’t said. Tony Stark, playboy and fool, wouldn’t be trusted by any board of directors, not next to the powerful and composed Obadiah Stane.

“Then we’ll have to change that.”

He turned around, surprised. “We? Aren’t you a super secret spy or something? Doing super secret spy stuff.”

“I am,” she said, sauntering over. “But I like you.”

Tony blinked. “You… do? But I…”

She cocked an eyebrow. “But you what?”

“I mean, I’ve been mostly… _me_ around you,” he said, looking unsure. “People don’t like me when I’m being me. Well, Rhodey does but he’s known me since I was fourteen. Other people don’t though. They want…” He waved a hand. “Tony fucking Stark.”

Oh, how Natasha understood that. It was the same at SHIELD. They didn’t want Natalia Romanova, they wanted their perfect little Natasha Romanoff redemption story and every time she even _looked_ like she was drifting from their narrative, things got tense and even unfriendly.

“But I met Tony first,” she said, and he gave her a startled look. “He helped me with my mission and was a complete dork.”

She’d learned that last word from Clint and hoped she was using it correctly. The little smile that grew on Tony’s face told her she had. “I wasn’t a dork,” he protested.

“You were,” she said as she closed the gap between them. “I like Tony. The Tony fucking Stark show is amusing, I’ll give you that, but Tony is much better.”

The smile she got for that was hesitant but the most genuine thing she’d ever seen and it was _beautiful_. She wanted to see it again. She wanted it all for herself. In that moment, she knew one thing. She’d kill Stane, SHIELD and anyone or anything else that tried to keep it from her. Tony was hers.


End file.
